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May 28th, 2012
11:56 AM ET
Pastor's comments about gays draw protestersBy Eric Marrapodi, CNN Belief Blog Co-Editor (CNN)–Hundreds of protesters gathered this weekend in Maiden, North Carolina, to voice their displeasure with a pastor's statement that gays and lesbians should be rounded up behind electric fences. Sheriff Coy Reid estimated between 1,500 and 2,000 protestors came to the Catawba County Justice Center for a peaceful protest on Sunday. He said only two citations for noise violations were issued and there were no arrests. The protest was organized by the Catawba Valley Citizens Against Hate in response to a Mother's Day sermon by Pastor Charles Worley at Providence Road Baptist Church in Maiden. "I figured a way out, a way to get rid of all the lesbians and queers, but I couldn't get it past the Congress," Worley said to his congregation on May 13. A video of his comments went viral on YouTube. "Build a great big, large fence - 50 or 100 miles long - and put all the lesbians in there," Worley said. "Fly over and drop some food. Do the same thing with the queers and the homosexuals, and have that fence electrified so they can't get out. Feed them. And you know in a few years, they'll die out. You know why? They can't reproduce." Protestors chanted, "Love not hate," as the lined the road outside the Justice Center, which is 12 miles from thechurch. CNN’s Belief Blog: The faith angles behind the biggest stories Organizers of the protest said they wanted to counter what they called the pastor's hateful words with love and stressed prior to the event that "our Peace Keepers will respond quickly and vigorously to any behavior that detracts from the peaceful, non-violent plans of this event." On Friday night, vandals targeted the Providence Road Baptist Church, Lt. Daryl McCarty of the Catawba County Sheriff's office told CNN. "It appears that someone tried to set the air conditioning unit on fire in retaliation about his remarks against homosexuals and lesbians from the pulpit." McCarty said there was "no extensive damage or anything. The incident appears to have happened on Friday night. It wasn't a big enough fire. It only burned the cover off of some wires." An electric company easily repaired the damage Saturday, according to McCarty. Sheriff Reid said trash was lit under the air conditioning unit to start the fire. The unit is up against a brick wall and he said it did not seem like the vandals were attempting to burn down the building, saying, "It appeared they were trying to disrupt the service." The local fire marshal and a sheriff's deputy are investigating the fire further, Reid said. He also noted that Worley had received death threats after his comments and his department was actively following up on them. Repeated calls by CNN to the church and to the pastor's home for comment have not been returned. When Worley was approached outside his home on Sunday by CNN's Gary Tuchman and asked whether he would take back any of his comments, the pastor declined to comment. The church's website has also been down, but it had described the house of worship as independent and fundamentalist. It represents a Baptist tradition self-described as "old-time religion" and the website said church members consider the 1611 King James Version of the Bible to be the "inerrant Word of God." The church appears to be unconnected with any broader denomination. The Southern Baptist Convention, the nation's largest Baptist group, noted the Providence Road Baptist in Maiden is not affiliated with its 16-million member denomination and condemned the pastor's comments. Last week in Maiden, members of the church vigorously defended their pastor, who has been at the church for more than two decades. Some church members, who declined to give their names, said his words had been taken out of context. "He said he would feed them!" some church members told CNN, referring to the Worley's idea for rounding up gays. Another church member, who declined to give his name, said that "being gay and lesbian or homosexual is wrong according to the Bible. ... It's Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve." The sheriff said his deputies will be paying extra attention to the church building in the wake of the vandalism and threats. The church has about 300 members, he said. Reid, who has been with the sheriff's department since 1979, said the area had never seen anything quite like this. -CNN's Dan Gilgoff, Ismael Estrada, Gary Tuchman, and Rick Martin contributed to this article. soundoff (1,363 Responses)« Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 Next »Post a comment
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i tryy to live right but i cant be like christ he woul stop sll this nosence but in love i love everybody but not their ways i/m doing my best to make heaven my home
So, if you truly want to follow Christ's footsteps, why don't you get crucified? I'd be more than happy to drive the first nail.
celest, YOU are NOT a Christian if you support Worleys putting anyone behind fences like Hitler did in Germany
Grog says, you make your bong your home...
ha ha ha ha.
Grog mmake funny.
You are doing a bad job celest. This is what Christ has to say about eternal life.
And someone came to Jesus and said, Teacher, which good thing must I do that I may have eternal life?†But he answered him, Why are you asking me about what is good? There is only one who is good. But if you want to enter into that life, keep the commandments. The man said to him, Which ones? And Jesus said, Don't murder, don't commit adultery, don't steal, don't lie, honor your father and mother love your neighbor as yourself.
Is that all, I do all those things. And Christ said if you really want to be perfect in gods eyes and follow me in heavan, sell all your possesions and give it all to the poor. And the man walked about head down because he had many possesions
Okay so let's see if I've got this straight. Gays and Lesbians are leading an abhorred lifestyle and therefore they should be eradicated. Okay. Got it.
So...WHY didn't God eliminate LUCIFER from the very beginning, when he turned out to be SATAN, who is PURE EVIL? Why did God give Satan a pass and let him live and thrive as he is supposedly doing?
Contradict yourself much?
Your God failed and YOU fail.
Not bad, Grog.
It is amazing that he does not say the same thing about men and women that lay with other peoples wives and husbands,the Bible says they are wrong also.What kind of fence will they get?
One with peep holes.
I couldn't help but laugh (out loud) at the piece in the article stating that "said church members consider the 1611 King James Version of the Bible to be the "inerrant Word of God." " Just HOW ridiculous is this ?...Excuse the kind of pun, but just HOW in the name of God did they arrive at THIS conclusion ?
It's anyones guess.
I think what is even more baffling is how they could even understand the 1611 KJV. There are no bright colours, pictures, and way too many big words for people such as these.
I suspect they secretly read it in comic book form when nobody's looking.
"HOW in the name of God did they arrive at THIS conclusion"
1. Hmmmm, well, it *says* it is - that should be good enough, huh?
2. It comes from the old stories (books) that the ancient vicars of Rome (popes) and bishops assembled and okayed - the same system (Catholicism) which they so decry and hold suspect nowadays.
We all have heard of the 'little" man in Germany that but people in camps surrounded by fences.
Worley, YOU are NOT a Christian. YOU are that devil Hitler.
Worley and anyone that supports him will burn.
They are NOT born that way. It is a choice. They choose to live this degenrate lifestyle, burying their heads in the sand and ignoring reality.
But enough about Christians, let's discuss gays.
Most perfect post today...love it.
Let's do discuss gays. To all you haters out there... me and my partner own 2 homes.. out right! We have zero debt, no kids, and great careers. We go to the nicest clubs, the best parties, and have all the s e x we want. So, eat your boring, holier than hell hearts out.. We're having fun. And, yes, I'm glad I'm not going to heaven with you haters. Bring the comments you jealous haters...
ROFLMAO! 'nuff said!
LOL
Awesome! Mind if I borrow it?
I just fell in love with Colin.
Well put, i open a beer in your honor.....SPLOIT !!!!
the only thing to talk about when it comes to gay people is for them tyo get equal rights. Other than that they are same as non-gay people.
Go ahead DSI, ther's no copyright on quips.....
Bravo, Colin, Bravo
Colin, where is your proof in that? You know what is a CHOICE? Religion.
@CARL47
Were you named after the famous "hot carl" or was it the other way around.
Nice to see the white racists still spouting off. Wonder if he has a white hood in the closet.
Not sure about the white hood, but he for sure has a closet.. he's living in it.
More proof that it is people like Worley that should be rounded up and put in electric wire compounds.
i pray god opens the eyes of you unbelivers it is a pity you are so blind you can't see god is love jhon 3 16 for god so love this[world] he gave his only begotten son that[who soever ]belive on him shall not persish but have everlsting life sure he is love and will save but you have to trun from your wicked ways
I know God love me. That's why He made me gay!
you are too ignorant and closed minded to feel the love of God, I pray God writes his true law on your heart and opens your eyes.
I have no wicked ways. Not that I care what your god thinks about anything.
i pray god opens the eyes of you that have been decieved by a book written by men.
Death threats against him are being investigated.. what about the death threats he makes against gays and lesbians.. ARREST HIM
Man this is what the dipstick wants. Really no reason to protest him at all but just walk up and pat him on the head, then walk away. I mean we already know he is an idiot (ie religious) but he is but a special kind of idiot (ie religious zealot). Give him a lolly and send him on his way. Its giving these people attention in the media that causes the problem.
BEING AND LIVING GAY OR LESBIAN IS AN ABOMINATION TO GOD. READ LEVITICUS. WOE ON YOUR SOULS IF YOU BELIEVE OTHERWISE. YOU WILL REAP WHAT YOU SOW. YOUR ETERNAL HOME WILL BE THE LAKE OF FIRE, WHERE YOU WILL BE FOREVER,, TORMENTED. IT IS THE DUTY OF THE CHRISTIAN TO " TELL " YOU THE TRUTH. ANY OTHER VERSION, IS AN UNTRUTH..
Leviticus is old testament and hasn't been binding law to the Jew for over 2000 years and it was NEVER binding law to gentile.
It is important to understand that Christ did away with the Old Testament with the exception of the ten commandments which he recited in his own words as the the requirement for eternal life. This is in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It is important to note that the new testament is made up of the Gospel & Covenant of Jesus Christ, which is all those things Christ did and said prior to his crucification. The later part of the new testament is the "claimed" writings of his apostles, I say claimed because not all have been verified to this day.
The really important thing to remember is that the Covenant or new law that applies to Jew & Gentile alike is exclusively from the Gospel of Jesus Christ, again all those things Christ did and said before his Crucification. And the really important thing here is that Christ NEVER said anything about hom ose xua1ity and many believe he actually approved of it in the story of the Centurion and his "Servant". This is because pagan Centurions often kept live in male "servants" This servants handled all of the centurions needs, you get the drift. The centurion loved his servant and begged Christ to save his life all along saying in an ashamed way that he is not worthy and is a sinner. Christ answered to him that his faith is strong then anyones in Israel and went forth and save his servant. A very odd thing for a Jew "Christ" to say to a pagan, yet he did say it.
There are so many different christian beliefs. Many even believe that being gay is fine and marry gay couples.
Also note that your god is not my god and nothing your god says matters in the very least.
That finally did it, (with the all caps and all). Good job bigidiot. I'm a sky fairy fan now.
Thanks bigben549, if you hadn't used all caps, you would not have convinced me.
@JWT it is fine, Christ condoned it.
Yes yes yes.....here, grab your pop-up bible and your tin foil hat and come with me my friend. This is the ascent of man, you stand waaaaaay over there away from the rest of us. Great now we'll just keep on walking down the path, you just stay there and sing about how much the man in the sky loves you and how unless you blindly spread hate and misery to all those who aren't exactly like you they are going to burn and all that....though do try and keep it down, see we do this thing called thinking, and the idiocy you spew is nothing like it and does tend interrupt our concentration (what can i say, its either laugh or cry that so many people are dumb enough to still buy that crap).
Like I wrote to celestiahamm, The ways of thisw world are not the Christians' ways. Let the sodomittes and lesbians be married in civil unionizations but do not let them marry in light of God's man-built churches of Christan faiths! Even thouggh the temples of God are our bodies and the "True" Kingdoms of God lay inside one's body and we are all God's bildings, none will enter into the Kingdoms of God without the mercies of Christ Jesus so allowing it to so be done!
Then I assume you eat no shellfish or shrimp, keep a kosher kitchen, give regular blood offerings, sprinkling the blood about the altar, you regularly stone people to death when they take the Lord's name in vain or otherwise blaspheme, and otherwise support the death penalty (Leviticus clearly states the penalty for murder is death)...
Remember, it is from Leviticus that we get "an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth"- a doctrine spurned by Jesus himself, when he turns the other cheek.
don't believe everything you read Ben......by the way, snow white is also a fictional character....
@serpeant, Christ condones hom ose xua1 relations:
It is important to understand that Christ did away with the Old Testament with the exception of the ten commandments which he recited in his own words as the the requirement for eternal life. This is in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It is important to note that the new testament is made up of the Gospel & Covenant of Jesus Christ, which is all those things Christ did and said prior to his crucification. The later part of the new testament is the "claimed" writings of his apostles, I say claimed because not all have been verified to this day.
The really important thing to remember is that the Covenant or new law that applies to Jew & Gentile alike is exclusively from the Gospel of Jesus Christ, again all those things Christ did and said before his Crucification. And the really important thing here is that Christ NEVER said anything about hom ose xua1ity and many believe he actually approved of it in the story of the Centurion and his "Servant". This is because pagan Centurions often kept live in male "servants" This servants handled all of the centurions needs, you get the drift. The centurion loved his servant and begged Christ to save his life all along saying in an ashamed way that he is not worthy and is a sinner. Christ answered to him that his faith is stronger then anyones in Israel and went forth and saved his servant. A very odd thing for a Jew "Christ" to say to a pagan, yet he did say it.
i say A.MEN brother worley keep preaching and hold high the banner of god -jesus christ our savior
I say – You are a moron!
There is nothing Christian about this pastor or you.
I say Amen to him as well. He is simply saying what many Christians are too cowardly to say.
celest, YOU are NOT a Christian. You and worley and anyone that supports him will burn in hell
@evengelical, What he is saying is NOT even remotely Christian. Christ would call him a HYPOCRITE and charge him with Blashphemy.
The "ways of the world" are not Christian ways! Let then the world have its' ways and be not bitter about the ways the world will go! Let the gay and lesbian crowds be married in civil unionizations but not in the churches' places!
Where do keep your nazi souvenirs?
@serpeant, "Separate but equal is inherently unequal"
First we demand civil marriage as it is a civil right
Second we don't care about your churches there are already over 1000 churches that will marry us.,
Recommending rounding people up and putting them behind an electrified fence is no sort of Christianity I would ever even WANT to know.
Brother Worley, i like when you do that,
ooohhh, no dont stop, a little higher.....higher....faster....
PRAISE JESUS !!!!!
sqeptiq – "Excommunication" is not found in the Bible.
The church made that up if you dont toe the line.
The pastor's remedy may have been a bit extreme, but we do have a ho-mos-exual problem in this country. The answer is to re-criminalise ho-mos-exuality. We also need to bring back shame and stigma upon ho-mos-exuaity.
You're so right. WE have a ho mos exual problem in this country. THERE'S NOT ENOUGH OF THEM !!
We have a hate problem in this country, not a hom ose xua1ity problem.
@evangelical: the problem with today's world isn't the lifestyle that gays and lesbians pursue. It's sheer, blind stupidity. Too many bigoted, stupid people. WIthout them, we wouldn't have wars, greed and a crashing economy.
Why is what goes on in someone else's bedroom any of your business in the first place?
They are everywhere.
They do some sick things.
They cut thier lawn.
They work and pay taxes.
They have cookouts.
They have even preverted straights, as thier straight friends
come over for dinner and wine.
Evangelic you are the sick one.
My partner has to work today.
My jamaican niegbor, a "christian"
knew that we would not be celebrating this day.
Norma makes the best BBQ ribs on earth, and she made a plate for us.
Thats christianity.
Not your vile version of it.
Norma once told me, believe in Jesus
and toss out all de chit.
Smart.
The pastor should be reaching out in love to the degenerates instead of berating them
This pastor and his followers are degenerates, not lgbt.
No, Robairdo, it is the ho-mos-exuals who are the degenerates.
No Evangelical .. just because none of us want your ugly azz, doesn't mean you have to be so hostile. I have no doubt, you are some ugly fat pig, that guys have rejected, and now you're bitter.
@evangelical, just your ignorant small minded opinion which means absolutely nothing.
Oh, wow, Edwardo, you really showed me. Yes, you showed me that ho-mos-exuals have no morals at all because you can't disagree with someone without using gutter language and personal attacks.
@Evangelical – You are right... I have no morals at all. Never claimed to have. But unlike yourself... I'm not bitter, and I have a fantastic s ex life, party life, and great career. So shuv ur morals where the sun doesn't shine, as nobody would want to shove anything else in there.
CNN is baiting all of you and you're taking it.....
So did you....moron.
Many atheists hate the sins of the religious and many religious hate the sins of Atheists! Bigotted are many lots of the generations' sheepish crowds, be they ateists or be they religious, sheep will ever butt heads onto the very end!!
I swear, if this pastor and his followers were any dumber, we'd have to water them twice a week.
You have to remove weeds from a garden for it to grow,
Many of you rage because this world of darkness that you love is quickly vanishing. Even Lucifer, the one you follow, knows that! (NOTE: You can follow only one father. If you reject the Heavenly Father, then you follow the other father who is Lucifer a.k.a. Satan. Choose your daddy! A world with or wihout God.) The darkness you love is about to be extinguished forever by the Light known as the Lord Jesus when He returns in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. It is not His wish you follow Lucifer or go to his destination. You choose who you wish to follow and therefore your destination.
You think that what you perceive of this world with your faulty and limited human senses is true. To the contrary, there is a lot more that you don't see than you do see. As the apostle Paul stated, "For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places." Oh how so true! By the way, your father Lucifer has yellow hair. I do not like him, and he does not like me.
Rage on!
Wait, are you paraphrasing from the 1611 King James edition or some errant version?
The Kingdom of God is inside one and all peoples' bodies are but buiildings for God and God's kind to inhabit! If one or a few or even many can't comprehend this truth, the be as fools and stupid idiots!
Oh my God – you are the one who is blind. You and your kind truly are a manifestation of the antichrist. You have turned the words of Jesus upside down and inside out in order to justify your narrow, hateful, and dare I say, unchristian view of the world. I pray that you may wake up brother and see the errors of your ways.
John,
First, do you accept that God is the perfect, divine being who is all-knowing of everything that has happened and will happen?
Second, do you accept that God is the all-powerful being who created the heavens and the Earth, and is capable of dictating life and death in a mere thought?
Third, do you accept that God wants to make Earth as it is Heaven, thus ending evil for all time?
If you accept THOSE things, then I submit this to you:
1) God should've seen Lucifer turning out the way he did. He could've seen it coming and decided to fix Lucifer before he was fully created. Why was Lucifer's "I will be like the Most High" speech news to God? God could've prevented EVERYTHING having to do with evil right from the start. He failed.
2) Why does God need to "win" the war against Satan? Why is there a "war" against evil in the first place? I thought God was all-powerful, having control over EVERYTHING in the Earth and in the universe. After all, he created everything in existence and has the ability to destroy it in a mere thought of will. Why does he need us puny humans to do the dirty work and fight Satan as well? Apparently he can't get the job done on his own. Another FAIL.
3) For all the bad things that happen to good Christians, why doesn't he intercede? Oh wait...he's "testing" them. Riigghhht. He already knows whether they're going to "fail" or "not fail" his tests. Why give these "tests" in the first place? To "test" is a measure of trying to find out something. I thought God knew everything? FAIL
4) Why does God NEED to be worshipped and to exact punishment for those who don't worship him? What does a PERFECT BEING even need with with emotions at all, especially jealousy and anger? A perfect being needs NOTHING from humans to make Him complete: he's already perfect.
In fact, these things just prove God is a narcissistic, bored sadist.
Thank you for threatening others in My Name, but I feel you need to put more into praising Me. I'm happy with your efforts in attempting to describe My Eternal Wrath, but I could stand a bit more adoration out of you. Try saying some nice things about Me for awhile unless you don't care if I'm nice to you.
God is lucifer.
Lucifer is god.
The battle of good vs evil.
How do you know that you are on the right side ?
Because your bible tells you ?
Choose wisely for you may have already been decieved.
Was lucifer cast out, or is that just what god wanted you to believe.
You have been put to a test.
You have failed that test.
You understand the father, and the son,
but you dont understand the spirit. (The holy ghost)
Blind loyalty is dangerous.